CAPE TOWN - Just over 60 percent of South Africans say they would get a vaccine for Covid-19 if it were available, according to a new
Ipsos
survey.
The survey was conducted by market researchers at Ipsos, on behalf of the
World Economic Forum
, and saw almost 20 000 people from 27 countries around the globe surveyed between late July and early August.
In line with global trends, more than half of the South Africans who said they would not get vaccinated citing concerns about the side effects as the reason. This was the number one reason around the world, cited by 56 percent globally (from 70 percent in Spain and 68 percent in Sweden to 41 percent in Argentina and 40 percent in Saudi Arabia).
The second-most common reason for not wanting to take a Covid-19 vaccine is doubt about its effectiveness, cited by 29 percent globally (from as many as 44 percent in Russia and Poland to just 12 percent in China and 9 percent in Mexico).
The third most common reason is the perception of not being enough at risk from Covid-19, cited by 19 percent globally. Among those who are reluctant to be vaccinated, this view is most prevalent in India (37 percent), Malaysia (36 percent) and Sweden (35 percent), while it is least so in Italy (7 percent) and Brazil (10 percent).
In most countries, those who agree outnumber those who disagree by a significant margin (more than 50 percentage points in 12 out of 27 countries).
The countries where Covid-19 vaccination intent is highest are: China (97 percent), Brazil (88 percent), Australia (88 percent), and India (87 percent)
Those where it is lowest are: Russia (54 percent), Poland (56 percent, Hungary (56 percent), and France (59 percent).
Meanwhile, China stands out for its optimism, with 87 percent of those surveyed expecting a vaccine will be ready this year. The agreement is also high in Saudi Arabia (75 percent and India (74 percent).
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